World Church

Southern Africa-Indian Ocean

The Southern Africa-Indian Ocean Division (SID) is the newest of the world church’s regions, covering much of Africa and island nations in the Indian Ocean.

More than 150 million people live in this division, and there are more than 2.1 million Seventh-day Adventist Church members. That is a ratio of about one Adventist for every 72 people.

There are five educational institutions in this division: Helderberg College in South Africa, Mozambique Adventist Seminary, Rusangu University in Zambia, Solusi University in Zimbabwe and Zurcher Adventist University in Madagascar.

The Adventist Church has many missionaries and healthcare institutions in the division. Maluti Adventist Hospital in Lesotho has about 150 patient beds and sees on average 200 patients per day. The ophthalmology unit provides eye care for the eastern half of Lesotho, serving a population of about 1 million.

There is also a large Adventist literature operation in many parts of this region. In Zambia, which has more than 800,000 Adventist Church members, the Adventist Press has been supplying Christian books to sellers for more than 20 years.

Our beliefs

Seventh-day Adventist beliefs are meant to permeate your whole life. Growing out of scriptures that paint a compelling portrait of God, you are invited to explore, experience and know the One who desires to make us whole.